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Kingmaker : Pamela Harriman's astonishing life of power, seduction, and intrigue
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2024
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Library Journal Review
Award-winning journalist Purnell's latest Churchill family biography (following Clementine: The Life of Mrs. Winston Churchill) about English political activist and diplomat Pamela Harriman is triumphantly delivered by narrator Louise Brealey. While Harriman has often been overlooked or dismissed as little more than a courtesan, Purnell reveals her to have been a powerful political actor. Harriman married Winston Churchill's son Randolph when she was 19; overwhelmed by his gambling, drinking, and adulterous affairs, she divorced him six years later. During WWII, she was instrumental in gathering intelligence during state events and dinners and through targeted romantic engagements. In 1959, she married Broadway producer Leland Hayward, who died in 1971. After she lost her third husband, emissary Averell Harriman, to cancer, her worldly experiences gave her the confidence to speak at the 1984 Democratic National Convention in favor of the Mondale-Ferraro ticket. Nearly a decade later, she helped broker an end to the conflict in Bosnia. VERDICT Purnell's relatable biography of a little-understood stateswoman and political influencer is illuminating and remains highly relevant, though nearly three decades have passed since her death. This vigorous account is recommended for fans of Purnell's Clementine.--Sharon Sherman
Booklist Review
Harriman's motto could very well have been, Go ahead, underestimate me. That'll be fun. The daughter of a wealthy baron, Harriman was mocked as a child for being overweight and received only enough education to land a suitable husband. Her marriage to Randolph Churchill, son of Winston, was a match made in hell, but it provided Harriman with the pedigree to interact with the most prominent men in the world. Her unofficial role as chief counsel to her father-in-law during WWII put her in the room where it was all happening. Sexually uninhibited, Harriman was dismissed as a courtesan. But she was wily about the ways of power and politics, and her relationships with everyone from generals to journalists helped her broker some of the most consequential outcomes of the war. Following her eventual marriage to business titan and statesman Averell Harriman, she gained even more influence in American politics. So crucial were her contacts, so effective were her seductive tactics of persuasion that Harriman was officially rewarded for her impact when President Clinton appointed her ambassador to France. Purnell (A Woman of No Importance, 2019) presents a compulsively readable, multifaceted portrait of an oft-misunderstood woman whose role in twentieth-century geopolitics has, until now, been severely underappreciated.
Kirkus Review
Grit and glamour. British journalist Purnell, award-winning biographer of Clementine Churchill, turns her attention to Churchill's cherished daughter-in-law, Pamela Harriman (1920-97), somewhat condescendingly called, "the most powerful courtesan in history." Drawing on newly released material, including an extensive interview conducted by a previous biographer, Purnell creates a vibrant portrait of an influential political player in her native England and her adopted America. At 19, two weeks after her first date with Randolph Churchill, the couple were engaged, much to the dismay of her friends and parents. "Wherever Randolph went, scandal ensued," Purnell reports, and Pamela soon realized she had married "a drunken, offensive adulterer." At an emotional breaking point, overwhelmed by Randolph's mounting debts, she turned to Lord Beaverbrook, her son's godfather, for financial help. He agreed, provided she work for him in procuring information about America's plans for intervention in the raging European war. Pamela proved a star player in Operation Seduction USA; her conquests included Roosevelt's emissary Averell Harriman and broadcaster Edward R. Murrow. Purnell recounts Pamela's "strategic" sex life, which included affairs with Prince Aly Khan and Fiat mogul Gianni Agnelli. Later, marriage to Hollywood agent Leland Hayward gave her access to a new circle of celebrities, but it was politics that compelled her. Within a year of Hayward's death, she reconnected with Harriman, married him, and became an American citizen. In Washington, Purnell reveals, she cast her spell, as she always had, over influential and wealthy men, working tirelessly and strategically for Democratic candidates, successful in getting many of them elected. In 1980, she was named Democratic Woman of the Year--an accolade typically bestowed on first ladies. In 1993, appointed by her friend Bill Clinton, she became the first female envoy to France, the pinnacle of a storied career. Meticulous research informs a captivating biography. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Summary
"A thorough account of Harriman's rise which also manages to be a brisk, twisty read ... riveting and revelatory." -- The New Yorker

"Rigorous but rollicking." -- The New York Times

Named a BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR by The New Yorker , Apple Books, The Economist , Politico , Town & Country , The Guardian, Financial Times , The Spectator , The Telegraph , The Oldie , Irish Examiner , Mail on Sunday , Daily Express , London Standard , and The Times Literary Supplement and a Must-Read Book of Fall 2024 by People Magazine

A Los Angeles Times Bestseller

From the New York Times bestselling and award-winning author of A WOMAN OF NO IMPORTANCE, an electrifying re-examination of one of the 20th century's greatest unsung power players

When Pamela Churchill Harriman died in 1997, the obituaries that followed were predictably scathing - and many were downright sexist. Written off as a mere courtesan and social climber, her true legacy was overshadowed by a glamorous social life and her infamous erotic adventures. Much of what she did behind the scenes - on both sides of the Atlantic - remained invisible and secret. That is, until now: with a wealth of fresh research, interviews and newly discovered sources, Sonia Purnell unveils for the first time the full, spectacular story of how she left an indelible mark on the world today.

At age 20 Churchill's beloved daughter-in-law became a "secret weapon" during World War II, strategically wining, dining, and seducing diplomats and generals to help win over American sentiment (and secrets) to the British cause against Hitler. After the war, she helped to transform Fiat heir Gianni Agnelli into Italy's 'uncrowned king' on the international stage and after moving to the US brought a struggling Democratic party back to life, hand-picking Bill Clinton from obscurity and vaulting him to the presidency.

Picked as Ambassador to France, she deployed her legendary subtle powers to charm world leaders and help efforts to bring peace to Bosnia, playing her part in what was arguably the high-water mark of American global supremacy.

There are few at any time who have operated as close to the center of power over five decades and two continents, and there is practically no one in 20th Century politics, culture, and fashion whose lives she did not touch, including the Kennedys, Truman Capote, Aly Khan, Kay Graham, Gloria Steinem, Ed Murrow, and Frank Sinatra. Written with the novelistic richness and investigative rigor that only Sonia Purnell could bring to this story full of sex, politics, yachts, palaces and fabulous clothes, KINGMAKER re-asserts Harriman's rightful place at the heart of history.
Table of Contents
Prologue1
Act 1War7
Act 2Peace141
Act 3Power237
Acknowledgments449
Notes455
Selected Bibliography475
Picture Credits485
Index487
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